Scottish paper: Ex-Celtic coach ‘strong candidate’ for Korea job

A Scottish newspaper reported that a former head coach of a pro football club there has emerged as a “strong candidate” to take over the South Korean men’s national team.

The Scotsman said Neil Lennon, former head coach of Celtic FC in the Scottish Premier League, is “on a short list” to become the new bench boss for South Korea, which has been seeking a replacement for Hong Myung-bo, who resigned earlier this month following the country’s early exit from the FIFA World Cup in Brazil.

According to the Scotsman, Lennon had been linked to jobs in the United Arab Emirates, in particular with Al Shabab, but is now among a few other European names in line to take charge of Korea. (Yonhap)

World Cup qualifying campaign

Korea will begin its regional qualification for the 2018 World Cup in Russia next summer, hoping to reach the quadrennial tournament for the ninth consecutive time. The AFC on Wednesday released the match calendars for 2015 on its website. According to the schedule, Korea, which will likely get a bye into the second round, will have the first qualification match on June 11, with the second match to follow five days later. (Yonhap)